Brentsville School Board member Gil Trenum with his wife Michelle. (Photo by Mike Beaty)Gil Trenum, Brentsville District representative and most senior member of the Prince William County School Board has announced he will not be running for reelection in November.
He made his announcement during school board members' time after midnight at the Jan. 16 school board meeting.
Trenum, who is a member of the Republican party, served for 12 years, or three terms, on the school board. He ran unopposed in the most recent election in 2015. He served as Vice Chairman in 2010 and 2014.
He said that 12 years ago Brentsville schools, which includes Bristow, Nokesville, as well as parts of Gainesville, Haymarket and Manassas, were “overcrowding” and “packed to the gill," when he ran his first campaign.
He aimed to provide a “parent perspective” and address the “frustrations parents had with dealing with the bureaucracy of the school division," which like any other government entity has its problems.
“I’ve worked hard over the years to increase transparency and involve parents and the school community in school decisions," Trenum said, emphasizing budgeting and school boundaries decisions as two examples.
He cited reducing overcrowding in his district as his greatest achievement on the board.
“Twelve years later [we] practically eliminated overcrowding in The Brentsville district at the elementary school level," he said.
Trenum felt it was time to move on since his children have since graduated from high school. One is a 2nd Lt. in the Marine Corp and his youngest is at Virginia Tech.
He said it's often a challenge “to recognize when your time for service should end,” but having someone new would be good for the board and his district.
“Too much stability can lead to stagnation. We must recognize the value of fresh ideas," he said. "Brentsville needs a representative with kids in the system someone who can share the experience with their constituents.”
In addition to helping relieve elementary school overcrowding, Trenum helped to open new schools including Patriot, The Nokesville School and Colgan in the Coles District. He pushed for a 13th high school design to accommodate more students, look modern and be budget-conscious.
He also promoted the incorporated concussion education for parents and student athletes and created the Brentsville-Gainesville community budget committee.
Trenum held his position as Brentsville representative when he was stationed in the north Africa US Navy Reserves during the 2016-17 school year. Shawn Brann temporarily filled in as acting school board member.
Brann has indicated that he may be interested in running for the office.
During the daytime, Trenum is a senior systems engineer and technical manager. He has worked in national security, the field of intelligence and information systems for over 20 years.
He served as an active duty US Navy officer and continues to serve his country as a Navy Reserve Commander supporting the Office of Naval Research.
Trenum and his wife Michelle have lived in Prince William since 1996 when he was assigned shore duty at the Pentagon as a nuclear submarine officer. Their three boys attended Nokesville Elementary School and Brentsville High School.
During the Jan. 16 meeting, Gainesville representative Alyson Satterwhite thanked Trenum for his service.
Woodbridge representative Loree Williams said Gil will be greatly missed by his district. She said she is glad he is sticking around for school budget season, which is a part of the job he very much enjoys.
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